Second Time's the Charm?
by JoannaBanana91
Summary: Gabe apologizes to Hanna for the whole road-side fiasco, and they become close friends while she's at college. Hanna breaks up with Caleb after realizing she's fallen out of love with him, although they still care about one another as friends. After another kiss with Gabe, Hanna start to question the status of their relationship.


A/N: Okay, so I know this isn't going to be the best story since it's only a one-shot, but I couldn't get the idea out of my head. And you know, if the writers were actually brave, I wouldn't need to do this, but you know what they say..."If you want something done right..."

The point-of-view will be Hanna's in this story (obviously).

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 **JUNE 2017, ROSEWOOD, RESTAURANT**

There was a part of me that was glad to be sitting here with my mom in this restaurant, but there was also another part of me that wanted to be anywhere else but here. Anywhere but Rosewood.

I checked my watch. _He_ was late. I spun the shiny engagement ring on my left finger with my right hand nervously. Mom didn't say anything as she checked her phone to see if Ted had left her any text messages. They never got married, but they were still dating, and Ted was even living at the house. I had found out during winter break when I came home to visit her during my freshmen year at college, but something else happened before then that changed my life forever.

 **NOVEMBER 2012, IN THE CAR, DRIVING BACK TO NEW YORK**

I couldn't believe what just happened. I never expected to see _him_ again...At least not in a million years.

 _*~ Four Hours Ago~*_

No sooner had I walked into that bookstore did I want to turn around and leave. I couldn't believe Caleb had actually talked me into coming here. All for one stupid book! Thank God he wasn't here, or else he would know something was wrong, but he would be right. Right over by the "Mysteries/Suspense" section, I spotted _him_. Gabe. Gabriel Holbrook. The guy I hadn't seen since our road-side fight seven months ago. Out of all the bookstores in Philly, he had to be in this one. Although there was a feeling that I couldn't quite shake. A part of me was happy to see him again (against my better judgement), but there was also another part of me that refused to forgive him no matter what. I went against my better judgement and decided to walk over to him.

 _"Better to get this over with now, then later,"_ I thought to myself. I cleared my throat, and to my surprise, he actually looked a little flustered when he turned around and saw me. I could even feel myself blushing being that close to him again. He looked _good_. No, he looked better than good. He had hair on the back of his head again, and it was tussled up in a way that just made me want to...No. I had to stop myself right there. After all, I was still with Caleb, and I needed to remind myself that I was still angry with him. And I was.

"Hanna! What...What are you doing here?"

He looked nervous. I tried to stop a smile from creeping up. There was a part of me that was enjoying how guilty he looked.

"Oh, there's this book I really wanted, and I had to get it. But tell me Gabe, What are you doing here?"

"Same reason as you. A book," his eyes softened after that and then he said "How have you been?"

"Okay, I guess. I'm living in New York with Caleb. Going to a good college, you know."

"Oh! That's great! I'm happy for you."

There was an awkward silence for a couple seconds, although it felt like longer. After a while, he finally decided to speak up.

"Look, Hanna. I know this isn't the ideal place to do this, but...I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am. About that night. I shouldn't have followed you on to that road, and I shouldn't have grabbed your arm. And I sure as hell shouldn't have tried to kiss you, it was really stupid of me. I'm so sorry about it. About everything."

I nodded, quietly accepting his apology. This one was different from his first apology. That one was back when I was in high school and he was just some new cop who had recommended a book for me. We barely even knew each other than when he apologized the first time, but this time it was different. We were friends when we hung out with each other after that, however brief a time that was. That's what made it _so much worse_.

"Thank you."

I nodded and turned to leave, but my stupid brain forced me to turn around again. I had to know the truth. The whole truth. Was he really with Alison? Why was he so angry over being suspended that day?

"There's something I don't get though. What were you really doing with Alison? Out of all the people in the world, why would you want to date her? Or help her? It doesn't make any sense to me."

He surprised me again by chuckling. Apparently, our assumptions about him were completely off.

 _*~Back in the car~*_

It was Melissa. She had convinced him to do everything. Well, almost everything. Cece had also blackmailed him into messing with the lie-detector test, but at least he never dated Alison. His motive was surprisingly simple. He thought we were in danger and had just wanted to help. There was a part of me that was slightly confused, but another part of me that was extremely happy. Once again, my brain made me stupid, and I decided to give him my number. Oh you know the old saying? "We're just friends"? That was my intention when I decided that we should exchange numbers and hang out some time. At least that's what I told myself.

 **APRIL 2014, COLLEGE LIBRARY, NEW YORK**

He was my friend. No, he was more than that. He was my best friend. Something I never even thought was possible. I had guy friends before, but I never thought Gabe and I would end up as close as we are now. I smiled at the thought. After running into him at that bookstore in Philly, things between us took a while to patch up, but after six months, we became inseparable. I absolutely love being around him, a fact that I'm struggling to keep from Caleb as of late. We're still together these days, but to be honest, I'm kind of bored. I know what I have to do.

I know I have to break things off with him, but I don't want to break his heart.

 **JULY 2014, NEW YORK CAFE**

Caleb took everything a lot better than I expected. We talked about it for a while and decided that we should just be friends. I was glad. I may have fallen out of love with him, but I don't exactly want to shut him out of my life forever either. I didn't say anything, but had started getting some vibes between him and Spencer, and to be honest, I was curious about what they'd be like as a couple. Although they're not exactly an item...Not yet at least.

 **MARCH 2015, NEW YORK, APARTMENT**

My roommate is still in the shower. God, doesn't this girl realize how much a run-down apartment such as this one costs?

Caleb and Spencer are both dating other people, some Tina or John somethings. I'm not really dating anyone these days. At least not seriously. They're more flings then dates, and they change every three months or so. I'm still in college so I might as well enjoy it right?

Distractions aren't always a bad thing.

 **DECEMBER 2015, PHILADELPHIA, LOCAL PARK**

I'm still laughing over what he said. Gabe could usually make me laugh, but today I realized just how close we had really gotten.

 _*~Three Hours Ago~*_

"Han, are you copying me?"

I knew he was being playful, so I just smirked at him. To be honest, I had been wondering the same thing myself. I told myself that a watch would be good to have so I wouldn't have to reach into my pocket just to see what time it was, but I was a little surprised at my choice of watch too. It was a silver one with a square clock, similar to his except smaller and not round. I even wore it on my left arm, just he like he did with his.

"Maybe you're copying me."

"How can I be copying you?"

"I don't know, but I'm pretty sure you are. And you know that saying? 'Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery' or something like that? I don't know, the watch was cute okay! Damn, leave me alone."

Gabe smiled after that. We always said stupid things to each other like this.

 _*~Present*~_

We laughed about some more stupid things after that, and then he left. What time is it?

 _2:30 p.m._

 **FEBRUARY 2016, NEW YORK, APARTMENT**

My roommate was out with her boyfriend. Good. I needed to be alone right now. It was almost unbelievable to me that what had just happened one hour ago had actually happened.

 _*~One Hour Ago~*_

It was our first kiss. Or our first/second kiss if you wanted to get technical. It seemed like a good idea, but this time, it wasn't Gabe who stopped it, but me. We were practically borderline making out, _and I stopped it._

Gabe and I just stood there awkwardly until he decided to say something.

"Uh...So much for that not happening ever again."

I grimaced. He remembered what I had promised him back when I was in high school.

"Yeah... Um, I think you should probably leave. I'll call you, or whatever."

He nodded and turned to leave.

 _*~Present~*_

I knew why he had left. The awkwardness was one reason, but there was also another reason for it. He was scared.

 _We both were._

 **MARCH 2016, DRIVING TO NEW YORK FROM PHILLY**

I knew I was in love with him. I didn't want to admit it, but I knew. And there was something inside of me that told me he loved me too. He didn't even need to say the words, I just knew it. After our first/second kiss, we pretended like everything was okay. I didn't use the excuse "Accidentally run into your mouth" this time, but I did say that we got caught up in the moment. Which we did. The most we had done before then was just hug, which may sound shocking, but is actually true.

We were friends again. Friends who were secretly in love with each other. God, I don't know what to do. After Caleb I never thought I would be able to love someone that way again, but...Ugh. Damnit. What the hell am I supposed to do now?

 **JUNE 2017, ROSEWOOD, RESTAURANT**

There he was. I smiled.

"Gabe!"

He spotted me and smiled back. He walked over to us. He sat down next to me for a few seconds before saying, "Let me see it."

I showed him the ring. He grabbed my hand and eye-balled it like some nosey tourist looking for an expensive souvenir at a gift shop.

"Wow! This is worth more than I make in a year. Can you ask Jordan if there's a job for me at that fashion place?"

I stuck my tongue out at him. After that, mom started talking to him about some scandal in the news while I sat there, quietly thinking.

My fiancé was some guy named Jordan that I had met four months ago. He was a very sweet guy, and I did care about him...

 _But he was just a distraction._

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A/N: THE END! I hope this was somewhat enjoyable for people. I personally found it very cathartic since this ship isn't exactly popular and I miss their scenes like CRAZY. Oh well. At least I tried, which was somewhat difficult since they haven't had a good scene together in a hundred years. That's one reason why I skipped around a bit, because they haven't been friends long enough in show!canon to decide how they would react to certain things. Also, I'm still struggling to figure out what he was really up to in season five, so there's that too.


End file.
